Mistrial declared in murder trial of South Carolina officer who killed an unarmed black man

Former
North Charleston police officer Michael Slager reacts to a
question while testifying in his murder trial at the Charleston
County court in Charleston, S.C., Tuesday, Nov. 29,
2016.Grace Beahm/Post and Courier via
AP

The trial of a former South Carolina police officer accused of
murdering an unarmed black motorist was declared a mistrial
on Monday, after the judge confirmed the jury was unable to reach
a verdict.

Michael Slager is facing a maximum of life in prison for his role
in the 2015 killing of Walter Scott, whose death reignited a
national debate about police violence against minorities. The
jury was also allowed to consider a lesser charge of
manslaughter, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years.

The jury deliberated for more than 22 hours over the
course of four days, but on Monday afternoon informed Judge
Clifton Newman that they were unable to reach a consensus.

"We as the jury regret to inform the court that despite the best
efforts of all members, we are unable to come to a unanimous
decision," the jury said in a note to Newman.

Solicitor Scarlett Wilson did not comment on the outcome,
but vowed to retry Slager in the future. However, there's no
indication that there is any evidence or testimony left to
present. Over the course of the monthlong trial, jurors heard
from 55 witnesses, and last week they
visited the grassy vacant lot where the shooting took
place. Newman called the 4-day deliberation period "the longest
that I've ever been involved in."

The decision came as a disappointment for the Scott family and
prosecutors, who had argued throughout the trial that Slager
showed evidence of malice during the incident that resulted
in Scott's death, a requirement for a murder charge. They
repeatedly played the now-famous
bystander video of the shooting for the jurors, showing the
North Charleston patrolman shooting at Scott eight times as Scott
ran away from the patrolman, hitting him with five
bullets. By the time Slager, who is white, fired his first
shot, Scott was about 17 feet away from him.

But Slager testified last week that before the bystander,
Feidin Santana, started recording, Scott had
wrested his Taser away and tried to use it on him, putting
the officer in "total
fear" for his safety. Santana denied Slager's account.

Michael
Slager (R) is seen shooting 50-year-old Walter Scott in the back
as he runs away, in this still image from video in North
Charleston, South Carolina taken April 4,
2015.Feidin Santana/handout via
Reuters.

Meanwhile, Slager's attorney, Andrew Savage, argued the media
were trying to make Slager a scapegoat for other racially
charged police killings across the country, referencing
the deaths of
Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, Louisiana,
Sylville K. Smith in Milwaukee, and
Eric Garner in New York City.

"What happens when the media does this is they mislead the
public," Savage said during his closing statement last week.
"They have a narrative of what happened and because of what
they've been told they have certain expectations."

"This is not heat of passion," he said, citing one of the
criteria for manslaughter. "This is a law enforcement officer
carrying out his duties."

Prosecutors also accused Slager of attempting to stage the crime
scene — after shooting Scott, Slager can be seen in the video
picking up his Taser and dropping it closer to Scott's lifeless,
handcuffed body. Slager said he was following protocol by
accounting for his weapons.

The 12 jurors — 11 of 12 of whom
are white — periodically communicated to the judge
through notes as they deliberated, and indicated on Friday
they were having trouble reaching a consensus. After another
round of deliberation, a juror admitted he was
unwilling to declare Slager guilty.

"We all struggle with the death of a man and all that has been
put before us. I still cannot without a reasonable doubt convict
the defendant," the juror wrote in the note to Newman. "At the
same time, my heart does not want to have to tell the Scott
family that the man that killed their son brother and father is
innocent."

"But with the choices, I cannot and will not change my mind."

In a separate note, the the jury's foreman seemed to
indicate the jury was locked in an 11-1 split, with only the
first note-writing juror opposing a guilty verdict. On Monday
morning, the foreman clarified his comments, saying a majority of
the jurors remained undecided.

Deliberations resumed after Newman provided the jury with
definitions of relevant legal terms, including "imminent danger"
and "self-defense."

People
participate in a rally to protest the death of Walter Scott
outside City Hall on April 8, 2015 in North Charleston, South
Carolina.Richard Ellis/Getty
Images

The incident began on April 4 of last year, when Slager, a North
Charleston officer with five years of experience, pulled Scott
over for a broken tail light. Dashcam video shows Scott exiting
his vehicle and fleeing the scene — perhaps due to fear of his
unpaid child support obligations, his family said. Slager pursued
Scott on foot, leading them to the scene of the shooting.

Slager
was fired from the department days later, when Santana's
video appeared to contradict the officer's account of the fatal
confrontation.

Scott's death sparked outrage and protest in North
Charleston, where whites make up just 37% of the
population, but nearly 80% of the police department, according to
The New York Times, citing Justice Department
data. The tension was exacerbated two months
later, when self-professed white supremacist Dylann Roof
allegedly gunned down nine black worshippers in a church in
nearby Charleston.
Jury selection for that trial is underway.

Last week, local authorities and community advocates urged
residents to
remain calm as the trial came to a close.

Slager has also been indicted on three federal
charges: violating Scott's civil rights, unlawfully using his
weapon in the commission of a crime, and obstruction of justice.
No date has been set for that trial.

Slager acknowledged during his emotional testimony
that he could have handled the incident better.

"Going back 18 months later and looking at everything,
things could have been different," he said. "My
family has been destroyed by this. The Scott family has been
destroyed by this. It's horrible," he added later.